The invention relates to a method for determining the trainability of a patient suffering from incontinence by determining the innervation of the pelvis base muscles, the anal sphincter muscles or the pubococcygeal muscles and comparing the values with predetermined values.
Apparatus for the treatment of human incontinence have been devised by which the activity of the pelvis base muscles, the anal sphincter muscles or the pubococcygeal muscles can be determined. The activity of the muscles is recorded by means of an electromyogram (EMG). The forces generated by the various muscles are indicated for example by a series arrangement of light emitting diodes.
A particular person, can be motivated to increase the intensity or the activity of the respective muscles through the use of feedback coupling to that person to indicate the activity or contraction forces of the respective muscles. It is the aim of the person subjected to such training to achieve a high muscle activity for a relatively long period. With an increase of the muscle activity, the person can learn to control and finally eliminate incontinence.
DE 94 16 826U discloses an apparatus for training the closing muscles wherein a sensor is inserted into the anal canal which senses the electric potentials generated during activation of the anal sphincter muscles and transmits them to a processing unit. The sensor signal is first processed in a signal processing unit and is then transmitted to an display control unit. With the display control unit, the light emitting diodes are controlled. The sensor signal is essentially filtered in the signal processing unit. In order to obtain a flicker-free signal display, the signal is passed through a low-pass filter wherein signal valleys and peaks are equalized in order to achieve a steady display signal.
It has now been found that with such training apparatus not only the anal incontinence, but also a certain type of urinal incontinence, the so-called stress incontinence, can be improved or even eliminated. However, it has further been found that the stress incontinence can be improved or eliminated only if the innervation of the pelvis base muscles, the anal sphincter muscles or the pubococcygeal muscles is in a certain range. To determine whether the innervation of these muscles is in a certain range the apparatus known in the field are not suitable.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a method which permits a classification of the innervation degree of the muscles. The innervation degree, for example, indicates to what degree the pelvis base muscles are in communication with the nerve system.